Bribery in international business

Israel joins OECD Working Group on Bribery

09/12/2008 - Israel has officially joined the OECD Working Group on Bribery, an important step in its accession to OECD membership. Israeli officials took part in the Working Group’s meetings in Paris on 9 December, International Anti-Corruption Day. Israel becomes the 38th signatory and first Middle-Eastern country to join the OECD’s Anti-Bribery Convention.

Israel is one of five countries, with Chile, Estonia, Russia and Slovenia, that were formally invited to open membership talks, as part of the Organisation’s drive to broaden and deepen its involvement with emerging new players in the global economy. Chile, Estonia and Slovenia are already signatories to the Convention.

Interview with Patrick Moulette, head of OECD Anti-Corruption division, talking about progress made and challenges ahead in the fight against corruption.

OECD has also launched a partnership with the African Development Bank (AFDB) to support the efforts of African governments and business to fight bribery and corruption and boost corporate integrity.

The Anti-Bribery and Business Integrity in Africa initiative will involve the two organisations working closely together to design and help put in place effective policies in the fight against the bribery of public officials.

Working closely with business and African policymakers, it will also focus on improving the competitiveness of private sector firms in Africa by improving standards of corporate integrity and accountability.

The first meeting is planned for May 2009. A review of anti-bribery policies and practices in 20 African countries, together with recommendations for action, will be discussed at the meeting.

Officials from China will also attend this week’s Working Group meeting. China’s involvement in OECD work on anti-corruption is part of a broader commitment to strengthen co-operation, following the resolution by OECD countries in May 2007 to work more closely with China, as well as Brazil, India, Indonesia and South Africa, with a view to their possible membership. Brazil and South Africa are already signatories to the Convention.

At the meeting, Chinese officials will present an overview of their efforts to fight bribery in China. This follows a visit by OECD officials to Beijing and Shanghai in May 2008 to examine how OECD can work more closely with China to help in their fight against corruption.

These initiatives form part of OECD’s drive to improve global governance. These include: preventing bribery through export credits; denying tax deductability of bribes; preventing corruption in the public sector; and improving governance through development assistance.

For more information on OECD work on governance and the fight against corruption, please see www.oecd.org/corruption